Which Bathroom Should a Transgender Employee Use? The Federal Government Chimes In

Bloomberg BusinessJune 4, 2015

For transgender people, a day-to-day activity as mundane as going to the bathroom at work can be complicated, confusing, or so unwelcoming that they just don’t go at all. Right now, the U.S. doesn’t have any specific federal requirements for transgender-compliant restroom policies in the workplace. But this week, the Department of Labor’s Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) issued best practices that recommend transgender employees have access to the restrooms that correspond to their gender identity. “A person who identifies as a man should be permitted to use men’s restrooms, and a person who identifies as a woman should be permitted to use women’s restrooms,” the report reads. “The employee should determine the most appropriate and safest option for him- or herself.”